Algonquin Provincial Park

The woods are perfumed with rotting leaves, that forest smell so unique to autumn. A warm sun chases the morning chill as Allison and I work our way up a highland trail.

We're back in Algonquin Park for our annual fall weekend of hiking and photography, carefully timed at September's end to see the peak of the color. The canoe has been abandoned in favor of the hiking boots (always after second thoughts!). Algonquin's annual leaf-peeping season is but a narrow window between summer and winter. The odd mosquito may still be found, but the geese are rippling vees across the blue sky. How lucky we are, to live only a three-hour drive from one of North America's best attractions.

We would need a week of intensive walking, to cover all 13 trails that line the Parkway corridor. They range from half a mile to eight miles in length, and vary from an easy stroll to a rugged climb. It's far more fun to choose only a few, however, and take the time to enjoy them fully. Each one takes the hiker to marvelous autumn vistas of forest and lake, bay and bog. Parking and sanitary facilities may be found at the trailheads, and the trails include information sheets that explain points of interest.

One of the most interesting is the Track & Tower Trail, which exposes the walker to some of the Park's railroad history. At one point, the trail follows part of an old railway line, where the anchor points for a huge log trestle may still be seen. In the gorge, the remains of log cribs, foundation points for the trestle, still exist.

For the serious hiker, who wishes to spend more than several days walking in the Park, there are three backpacking trails, totaling more than 90 miles (140 km).

The Western Uplands Trail has several loops, ranging from 20 to 55 miles (32 to 88 km) in length. The Highland Trail has 12 and 22 miles (19 and 35 km) loops. The Eastern Pines Trail, which begins at the Achray Campground on the Park's east side, has 4 and 9 mile (6 and 15 km) loops.

Our rucksacks hold lunch and extra film, rainsuits, and spare layers of clothing. We'll start the day in sweatpants, and be down to shorts by noon. The day can end in rain or snow (or both!), or warm sunshine if the gods are kind. Best to be ready.

We stop to eat high on a ridge, overlooking a lake and miles of flamboyant maple forest, all reds and yellows. Far below, a string of heavily-laden canoes ghost across the blue water. Migrating geese voice their haunting farewells, from the heavens above.